Who Should I Start? Luke McCaffrey or Jalen Royals

Tuesday, November 4, 4:48 PM

The Washington Commanders have placed wide receiver Luke McCaffrey (shoulder) on injured reserve after suffering a broken collarbone during the opening kickoff of their blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night. McCaffrey has been an impactful kick returner and made multiple splash plays on offense this season, but is now expected to miss the remainder of the 2025 season. The second-year wideout out of Rice had the third-highest yards per kick return (29.6) and scored three touchdowns on only 11 total receptions as a receiver. The Washington Commanders have been wiped out by injury this season, especially at wide receiver. Veteran Deebo Samuel Sr., rookie Jaylin Lane, and the recently signed Treylon Burks will all be expected to see an increase in targets over the second half of the season.

Wednesday, October 8, 11:09 AM

Kansas City Chiefs rookie wide receiver Jalen Royals missed the first two games of the 2025 season with a knee injury. He's been active in each of the team's last three games, but Royals has not yet been targeted by Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The 22-year-old appears buried on Kansas City's wide receiver depth chart behind Xavier Worthy, Marquise Brown, Tyquan Thornton, and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Royals could fall down the depth chart even further in Week 7 when top Chiefs wideout Rashee Rice is eligible to return from suspension. Royals maintains some appeal in dynasty leagues, but he should remain off the radar of redraft fantasy managers for the time being.